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Three classic Edith Wharton novels are reissued as one stylish package

Born into a wealthy family, the early 20th century American novelist Edith Wharton had a first-class seat from which to view the trials and tribulations of New York's moneyed classes. Her three greatest novels—The House of Mirth, The Custom of the Country, and The Age of Innocence—have just been reissued by Penguin Classics in an omnibus edition, with an introduction by Wharton fan Jonathan Franzen. For the wrap-around cover, fashion illustrator Richard Gray, best known for his collaborations with the late designer Alexander McQueen, imagined the boxes of a fin de siècle theater, occupied by preening fashion victims snooping through opera glasses, acting scandalized, and sharing gossip. (Psst, did you hear what happened to Lily Bart?) Gray's delicious imagery captures the down-and-dirty spirit of Wharton's high society characters—while looking dressed to the nines, of course.

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Three Novels of New York, by Edith Wharton, illustrated by Richard Gray, Penguin Group, $25; us.penguingroup.com